Studied by 106 Peopleatom
Tags & Description
atom
the smallest pice of an element that still represents that element
electron
a particle with one negative charge (1-)
nucleus
an atoms mass and positive charge is concentrated in a small in the center of the atom
proton
an atomic particle that has one positive charge (1+)
neutron
a neutral particle that exists in the nucleus of an atom
electron cloud
an area around an atomic nucleus where an electron is most likely to be located
atomic number
the number of protons in an atom of an element
isotopes
atoms of the same element that have different numbers of neutrons
mass number
an atom is the sum of the # of protons & neutrons
avg. atomic mass
an element is the average mass of the elements isotopes, weighted according to the abundance of each isotope
radioactive
elements that spontaneously emit radiation
nuclear decay
a process that occurs when an unstable atomic nucleus changes into another more stable nucleus by emitting radiation
ion
an atom that is no longer neutral because it has gained or lost electrons
quarks
the elementary particles that make up the protons and neutrons that turn make up in the atomic nucleus
scanning tunneling microscope (STM)
enables scientists to see individual atoms used to obtain ultra-high resolution images at the atomic scale without using light or electron beams